Travis Kelce: I didn't push Taylor Swift's security guard

Travis Kelce, in a cardigan over a white shirt, holds hands with Taylor Swift who wears a plaid coat that's off one shoulder

By Jonah ValdezStaff Writer

Oct. 18, 2023 12:04 PM PT

Travis Kelce is setting the record straight on whether he pushed one of Taylor Swift’s security guards during a weekend visit to New York.

Footage of the moment has gone viral on TikTok, showing Kelce ushering Swift out of an SUV after the two made surprise cameos on “Saturday Night Live.” The NFL star is seen placing his hand on a security guard, who then steps aside as Kelce meets Swift, who emerges from the car.

The moment prompted the online comic known as Houffdizzle to post a spoof in which he plays the security guard angrily venting to a friend about the moment Kelce “pushed” him out of the way. “I was trying to do my job, and he just pushed me out of the way to open the car door for her,” the comedian joked in the sketch. “That’s what they pay me for — that’s why I’m here, head of security, I’ve been doing this for years.”

On Wednesday’s episode of the “New Heights” podcast, which Travis Kelce co-hosts with his older brother and fellow NFL player Jason Kelce, the siblings played portions of Houffdizzle’s videos, including the “push” incident spoof. Jason Kelce then asked if he got “any pushback from the actual security guards about pushing them out of the way that one night?”

“Pushing them out of the way?” Travis Kelce responded with incredulity. “I didn’t push him, I placed my hand on the gentleman’s back to let him know I was behind him. If I would’ve pushed him, he probably would’ve turned around and tased me.”

“That sounds like a way that somebody who pushed somebody would describe pushing them,” Jason Kelce said, egging on his brother.

Travis Kelce then went on to further explain that he simply didn’t want to “startle” the guard because “I know it’s [his] job to keep crazy people away and if you just randomly get pushed in the back while standing in front of a door that could probably be a little alarming.” He added that the security detail never mentioned the moment and called them “good people.”

Over the last month, Swift and Kelce’s alleged relationship has sent sports and pop-culture media, and their respective fandoms, into a frenzy. The “You Belong With Me” singer has regularly attended Kelce’s Kansas City Chiefs games (much to the NFL’s delight, and some fans’ chagrin), cheering him on from the bleachers (luxury box seats, to be accurate) alongside his family members and friends. “SNL” spoofed network TV’s dramatic reaction and vigilant coverage of Swift’s attendance at games; roaring applause greeted Kelce when he appeared at the end of the skit. Kelce had previously said he thought the league was “overdoing it” with their Swift coverage during games.

Though they have yet to officially confirm their relationship status, the pair was reportedly spotted displaying public affection while out in New York over the weekend, all but confirming their budding romance. The internet melted over photos of the pair holding hands, oftentimes with Kelce leading the way through hordes of paparazzi.

Kelce said on Wednesday’s podcast episode that on dates, he’s all about playing his chivalrous gender role, keeping an eye out for his companion while out in public.

“I feel like whenever I’m on a date, I’m always like having like the sense of like I’m a man in the situation,” he said. “I’m protective for sure — you always kind of have that feeling or that self-awareness.”

And some of that self-awareness has extended into his wardrobe, which is apparently the size of an entire bedroom, according to an interview with the Wall Street Journal published Tuesday. Kelce said he takes “at least three hours” to pick a game-day outfit and enjoys “the creative process of the panic to just throw something together.”

He made the comments days after one of his game-day fits — baggy brown crushed-velvet pants, which he wore to a Chief-Vikings game last week — became the butt of an online joke. Swift’s fans joked that the pants were cut from “Taylor’s curtains” that appeared behind the pop singer during an old promotional video. Fans posted side-by-side comparisons of the two, pointing out the uncanny similarities.

Kelce said in an Instagram comment that the pants are “as comfy as they look.”